Job Search Revolution: How To Answer Interview Questions Easily

Many people are afraid of interviews. That's understandable because they are about to meet strangers, have no idea what questions will be asked and their financial future is riding on their performance. No stress at all...right? Well what if it didn't have to be that way?

I am of course a big proponent of doing research on the company, preparing your 60 second intro, and using practice interview strategies. The real problem is that you have no idea what they are going to ask-how do you prepare for that? There is actually a way to take that fear out of the equation entirely....and there is a systematic way to do it.

The first step is to realize that every question in an interview has a specific purpose. They ask these questions because they are looking to find out if you have a specific skill set (to do the job) and/or soft skills (to fit into the organization). I won't spend any time on the skill portion as frankly you either have the experience or skills or you don't. Preparing for those types of questions is pretty straight forward. The problem usually comes from questions about how you handled situations, and they are sprung upon you with no chance to prepare...unless you use this strategy. Before you start answering any question ask yourself: "Why are they asking the question? What skill or ability are they asking me to demonstrate with a story?"

There are basically 5 categories of soft skills that employers across the country look for. They are :

1. Communication
2. Creativity
3. Initiative
4. Problem Solving
5. Teamwork/Leadership

If you are able to classify any interview question into one of these five categories then you can prepare by creating a story or two for each one of these categories and practice telling those stories a dozen times each to prepare for the interview. Write those stories out in the form of:

1. What did you do?

2. How did you do it?

3. What was the result?

Make sure that each of these stories are practiced and able to be told in 60 seconds or less. Then each time you are asked an interview question you should go through this thought process before you start talking:

1. Which of the 5 soft skills are they searching for with this question?
2. Which of the two stories that I created to show this soft skill answers this question best?
3. Picture that event in your head and review the details of it
4. Give yourself 5 seconds of silence before you start talking to accomplish all of this

Then it is as simple as telling them a story (in the same form that you wrote and practiced) that you have already practices a dozen times. See, with this strategy not only can't they ask a question that you aren't prepared for but you actually control the direction and content of the interview by choosing what stories best demonstrate your soft skills.

I will warn you that most people will read this, think it's an inspired idea...and then promptly not do it. Most people don't actually do this work until they have failed at several interviews for the job of their dreams. If you have ever said: "I'll do anything to get a great job" ...don't tell me...show me. You have virtually 100% control over how your next interview goes. Prepare like your house payment depends on it...because it just might.

Be Humble, Be Sincere, Ask for Help,

Chris

Need help navigating your job search or career change? We can help. 

Our job search process, Human Search Engine can teach you an entirely new way of finding your next and best job. The old “send in a resume and cross your fingers” doesn’t work, and HR is a broken system. Before you even think about applying for another random job online, you need to know who you are, what you need from your work, how you create value and who values your skills and abilities.

Human Search Engine is a process – not random advice on how to change a few words on your resume to get through the HR screening process. NOPE! We walk you through several stages of RESEARCH about you, your skills and abilities and how to find organizations that NEED and APPRECIATE those!

You need a structured plan to be successful at finding a role that fits YOUR priorities. Human Search Engine will help you develop a plan with goals, objectives and word-for-word details of what to do, what to say and when to say it!

If you’re tired of trying the old way of doing things, hate your job, or don’t currently have a job and it seems like nothing is working – we have the answer. How are we so sure? Well, we’ve helped over 2,000 face-to-face over the past 15 years and have happy, successful and employed clients to prove it!

Find more resources on our website: www.myhumansearchengine.com

Sign up for our mailing list and get “The Only Resume and Cover Letter You’ll Ever Need” templates, plus weekly motivation and to-do’s that will get you where you want to go!

Join our Facebook community and you can interact with Chris LIVE every Tuesday at 12:30pm CST!

Have more questions or want to send in a question for us to answer online? Give us a shout at customercare@hse.email – we’re excited to help you!

#jobsearch #careersearch #careeradvice #careerchange #newjob #interview #resume #coverletter #networking #careercoach #jobsearchhelp #jobhunt #jobhunting #interviewing #chrisczarnik #humansearchengine #job #jobs #shrm #hr #employeeengagement